Legislative Updates
Arizona: The House has Approved House Bill 2616 that would make it a Misdemeanor to Pay someone based on the Number of People they Sign-Up to Vote. Violators would be subject to Six Months in Jail and a $2,5000 Fine.
California: Assemblyman Ash Kalra (D-27th District) has introduced Assembly Bill 59 that would Amend the California Voters’ Choice Act to Require College Campuses with 10,000 or more Students to Host Vote Centers.
Colorado: Gov. Jared Polis (D) has Signed Legislation into Law that will include Colorado in the National Popular Vote Compact. Groups lead by Local County Legislators have begun Circulating Petitions to Repeal the Law. Supporter of an Appeal have until August 1st to gather approximately 200,000 Signatures.
Connecticut: The Government Administration and Elections Committee Advanced a Proposal on Tuesday that would Amend the State Constitution to allow Early Voting and No-Excuse Absentee Voting.
Delaware: Proposals to allow Early Voting and Same-Day Registration have Passed their First hurdles in Delaware’s Legislature. The Early Voting Bill would allow Registered Voters to Cast Ballots at Vote Centers at least 10 Days before an Election. The House has Approved the Early Voting Bill by 34-6 Vote.
Florida: The Fort Myers City Council has Vote to Move the City Elections to Even years to Coincide with the National Election Cycle.
In a strict Party-Line Vote the House Criminal Justice Subcommittee has Advanced a Bill that would Require Ex-Felons to Clear Up any Financial Obligations Associated with their Sentence before being Allowed to have their Rights Restored. Under the Legislation meant to Clarify Amendment 4, Ex-Felons Convicted of Murder or a Felony Sexual Offense would also be Excluded from having their Rights Restored. Democrats called the Financial Issue a Poll Tax.
Georgia: By a 101-69 Vote, the House gave Final Approval for the Purchase of a $150 Million Statewide Electronic Voting System. But the System uses a Barcode to Store and Count a Voter's Ballot that the Voter can Not Verify that it Reflects their Vote.
Idaho: The House Senate Affairs Committee has Advanced a Bill that would Require County Commissioners, Clerks, and School Districts to work together to ensure that Schools remain Available as Polling Places.
Iowa: A Bill that would Require Postal Barcodes on All Absentee Ballots is heading to the Senate after the House Passed it Unanimously.
Kentucky: The Kentucky Legislature has Approved a Bill that will Strip Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes (D) of her Power over the State Board of Elections and make it a Misdemeanor for Anyone to Misuse the State’s Voter Registration system. Gov. Matt Bevin (R) Signed the Bill into Law.
Maine: Lawmakers heard from Dozens of Witnesses this Week on a Bill that would Expand Maine’s Ranked-Choice Voting System to include Presidential Elections.
Massachusetts: The Boston City Council is considering an Ordinance that would Require Landlords to Provide a Voter Registration Form to New Tenants when providing them with their Lease and other Documents.
Mississippi: Reforming Ex-Felon Voting Rights Restoration seems have come to a Halt in Mississippi this Legislative Session. At Least 18 House Bills were Filed this Session that would have led to those Convicted of Nonviolent Felony Offenses to having their Rights Restored after they Served their Sentence have All Died.
Montana: The House is considering Legislation already Approved by the Senate that would Allow County Elections Officials to begin Opening Mail Ballots beginning the Thursday before Election Day and for the Counting of those Ballots to Start on the Monday Before the Election. The Legislation has the Support of County Election Administrators.
New Jersey: Committees in both the Senate and the Assembly have Approved Legislation that will Allow the State to Join 33 others in using E-Poll Books to Check Voters in at the Polls. The Bills have Bipartisan Support.
Assemblyman Andrew Zwicker (D-16th District, Somerset) has introduced a Bill that would establish Ranked-Choice Voting at All State-Level and Federal Elections.
Assemblyman Kevin J. Rooney (R-40th District, Bergen) has introduced a Resolution Allowing the Secretary of State’s Office to Implement Programs to encourage Women to Exercise their Right to Vote in Honor of the Upcoming 100th Anniversary of the 19th Amendment. The Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution Prohibits the States and the Federal Government from Denying the Right to Vote to Citizens of the United States on the Basis of Sex.
New Mexico: Both the House and the Senate has now Approved a Bill that will Allow for Same-Day Registration. The Bill also Expands Automated Voter Registration Services to Additional State Agencies and Not just the Department of Motor Vehicles.
North Carolina: Gov. Roy Cooper (D) has Signed a Bill into Law that will Delay the Implementation of the State’s New Voter ID Law until 2020.
Oklahoma: The Oklahoma House has Approved a Bill that would Require the State to Periodically Check the Citizenship Status of All Registered Voters in Oklahoma. The Bill was Approved 66-26.
Tennessee: A House Panel has Advanced a Bill that will Loosen the Restrictions on Ex-Felon Voting Rights. Under the Proposed Legislation, formerly Incarcerated Individuals will No Longer be Required to be Up-to-Date on Child Support before their Voting Rights are Restored.
Texas: Under Senate Bill 9, Counties would be Required to Purchase Election Systems that use a Voter-Verifiable Paper Audit Trail. The Bill would also Create a Pilot Program for Post-Election Audits. The Law also would Prohibit Electioneering within 1,000 feet of a Polling Place. If Approved, Senate Bill 9 would Increase Criminal Penalties for Anyone who makes an Error on a Voter Registration Form.
Vermont: A Tri-Partisan Coalition of Lawmakers has introduced a Bill for Vermont to Adopt Ranked-Choice Voting.
Washington: Gov. Jay Inslee (D) has Signed the Native America Voting Rights Act into Law. Under the Law, Tribal Members will be able to Register to Vote even if their Home on the Reservation does not have a Standard Street Address. The Law also Allows Voter Registration on Reservations and for Ballot Drop Boxes to be Located on Reservations.
Legal Updates
Federal Litigation: U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson Ruled in Favor of the Campaign Legal Center and that the U.S. Department of Justice must Release the Names of the People mentioned in an Email from a Conservative Group that tried to Influence the Makeup of the President’s Disbanded voter-Fraud Commission.
Indiana: Datwaon Collier, 28 of Anderson Plead Guilty to 30 Misdemeanor Counts of Voter Registration Fraud. He Received a Year of Probation and Must Complete 50 hours of Community Service.
Kansas: A Three-Judge Panel of the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals hear Arguments this Week in the ongoing Case of Kansas’ Proof-of-Citizenship Law. Judge Jerome Holmes Pointed out that the State’s Law kept more than 30,000 People from Registering. The State Argued that Wasn’t the Law but Bureaucratic Problems.
Mississippi: A Panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has Ordered Lawmakers to Redraw a Senate District where a Lower Court Judge found that Black Residents’ Voting Power had been purposefully Diluted.
Virginia: Yolanda W. Stokes, the Former Hopewell, Virginia Voter Registrar has Sued the Hopewell Electoral Board in an effort to get her Job back. The Suit Alleges that the City Violated the Terms of the Agreement she Signed when she took her Job.
NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker
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